How to get a D8 visa to work remotely from Portugal
The D8 visa, also called the Digital Nomad visa, suits people who work remotely for an employer or clients outside Portugal and want to move here and then get a residence permit. First you submit your documents to a consulate or visa centre outside Portugal, then you enter on the D visa and go to AIMA (the migration agency) for your residence card. This is a practical guide, not legal advice.
Check that the D8 is right for you
The D8 is a visa for remote work: your income must come from an employer, clients or a business outside Portugal. If your main income will come from Portuguese clients or from work in Portugal, other routes are usually considered, such as the D2.
You apply for the D8 through a Portuguese consulate or visa centre in the country where you are a citizen or legally resident. Simply arriving in Portugal as a tourist and ‘applying as a nomad’ from inside the country is no longer treated as a normal route: the old manifestação de interesse mechanism (a declaration of intent to get a residence permit from inside the country) has been abolished.
Work out your income: you need at least four Portuguese minimum wages
The main threshold for the D8 is an average monthly income over the last 3 months of at least 4 remunerações mínimas mensais garantidas (Portuguese minimum monthly wages). It is set by law, so the amount changes every year: in 2024 it was €3,280 a month, in 2025, with a minimum wage of €870, it was €3,480 a month, and in 2026, with a minimum wage of €920, it is €3,680 a month.
It is usually calculated gross, that is, before tax. But it is better to have a margin: the consulate and AIMA (the migration agency) may look not only at your contract but also at the money actually coming in on your bank statements. If your income is in another currency, there is usually no single published rule on the exchange rate, so it is safer not to sit right at the minimum.
If you are moving with family, budget extra money
The four-minimum-wage threshold applies to the main applicant. For a spouse, children and other family members you usually also show means of subsistence: the guideline is based on the Portuguese minimum wage — 100% for the main applicant for a year, 50% for each adult family member and 30% for each child. In 2026 this is calculated from €920: €11,040 for the main applicant, €5,520 for an adult and €3,312 for a child.
In practice families often show not only income but also a savings balance. In one D8 case a family showed a €20,000 deposit and an income of about €5,000 a month for the family — this is not an official universal threshold, but an example of what was accepted.
Prepare proof that you work remotely
If you are an employee, prepare your employment contract, a letter from your employer saying the job is remote, and proof of salary. If you are a freelancer or sole trader, prepare a Service Provider Agreement, contracts with clients, invoices, statements showing payments coming in and, if you have one, the registration of your sole trader business or company.
Officially the D8 allows both an employment contract with a foreign employer and self-employment. But Russian employers and Russian banks may raise extra questions because of transfers, sanctions and proof that the money was actually received, so it is best to make your file especially transparent.
Put together the basic visa documents
You usually need: the national visa application form, your passport, photos, insurance, a criminal record certificate, consent for the Portuguese authorities to check your criminal record, proof of legal residence in the country where you apply, proof of accommodation in Portugal, proof of income and bank statements for at least the last 3 months.
The criminal record certificate is usually apostilled or legalised, if the issuing country requires it, and translated. The language of the translation depends on the consulate: some accept English, others ask for Portuguese. For AIMA in Portugal it is often safer to have a certified translation into Portuguese.
Sort out your accommodation in Portugal
For the visa you are usually asked for a comprovativo de alojamento (proof of accommodation): a tenancy agreement, a booking for a long enough period or a termo de responsabilidade (a letter of guarantee from a person in Portugal who is providing the accommodation). In practice consulates often prefer a long-term tenancy agreement, but this is a sore point: few landlords are willing to sign a proper contract long before you arrive.
If you sign a contrato de arrendamento (tenancy agreement), it helps if it is registered with the Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira / Finanças (the tax authority). Later AIMA often asks not for the agreement itself but for its registration and recibos de renda (rent receipts).
Book an appointment and apply at the consulate or visa centre
You apply through a Portuguese consulate or an authorised visa centre where you are legally able to apply. In some countries appointments have to be caught well in advance, sometimes several months ahead. Check the website of your own consulate: document lists and translation rules differ.
At the appointment your biometrics and documents will be taken. Your passport may be kept until the decision, or you may be asked to bring it back later for the visa to be stuck in — this depends on where you apply, so check in advance, especially if you plan to wait for the decision in another country.
Wait for the decision and for the D visa to be put in your passport
The official timeframe is often given as about 30–60 days, but real D8 waits can be longer. For Moscow in 2025–2026 people wrote about waiting 3 months, 5 months and even about 6 months. If there is no answer for a long time, people usually write to the consulate at the email address given on the receipt or information sheet after applying.
After approval the consulate sets a date to put the visa in your passport. A D visa usually lets you enter Portugal and stay for a limited period until your AIMA (migration agency) appointment.
After arriving, get your local numbers and prepare for AIMA
For the AIMA appointment you usually need a NIF (tax number), a NISS (social security number), a Portuguese phone number, insurance, accommodation and up-to-date financial proof. The NIF is often obtained before the visa, but you will certainly need it for AIMA.
The NISS and a bank account can be a problem. After the changes of 2024–2026 some Segurança Social (social security) offices refused D8 applicants if their contract was not Portuguese. Banks are also increasingly asking for a residence card, not just a D visa and an AIMA appointment. At the same time, in a recent case AIMA accepted a Revolut statement rather than one from a Portuguese bank — but this depends on the office and the staff member.
Get or request an AIMA appointment
AIMA is the Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo (the agency for migration and asylum); it replaced SEF. A D visa used to come with an appointment date straight away, but the procedure has changed. In 2026 people on the D8 were discussing the new AIMA portal: after you request a slot, invitations arrive, and the office is often assigned without a choice.
If no slot comes or your interview was postponed, keep all emails, receipts and confirmations. They matter if your visa expires before the AIMA appointment or if you have to explain your status at the border.
Go to AIMA for your residence permit
Bring the whole visa file to the appointment plus updated documents from Portugal: your passport with the visa and entry stamp, the AIMA form, NIF, NISS or proof that you tried to get one, insurance, the tenancy agreement and its registration with Finanças, rent receipts, bank statements for recent months, your employment contract or service agreement, payslips, invoices/recibos verdes (electronic receipts for the self-employed) if you are already working through a Portuguese atividade (registered self-employment).
Recent cases show that the documents required depend on the office. At AIMA Loja II in Lisbon, a Digital Nomad applicant was asked for a Service Provider Agreement with a certified translation, a certificate of registration as self-employed in Portugal, three recibos, a NIF with a Portuguese address, NISS, insurance, a 3-month Revolut statement, the tenancy agreement, 3 rent receipts and declarations from the applicant and the landlord. In another case Lisboa 2 took the passport, the AIMA form, NIF, employment contract, certificate of engagement, the last 3 payslips, the tenancy agreement with a declaração from Finanças, and insurance; the fee was €181.50.
Wait for your residence card and lay the groundwork for renewal
After AIMA the residence card is sent to your home or by courier. Waiting times vary widely: in one 2026 case a D8 card arrived about 2 months after the AIMA appointment; in other stories it took anything from a week to several months, and in unlucky cases the wait dragged on much longer.
For renewal it is important to think ahead about taxes and proof of income. If you have become a Portuguese tax resident and work as a freelancer, you usually need to register your atividade (self-employment) properly, issue recibos verdes and declare your income. If you remain an employee of a foreign company, the tax arrangement is different — it is best to discuss it in advance with a contabilista (accountant).
What it costs, according to community conversations
| D8 income | 4 minimum wages: 2024 — €3,280 a month, 2025 — €3,480 a month; in 2026, with a minimum wage of €920, it is €3,680 a month, usually before tax | source |
| family income | in one D8 case about €5,000 a month for the family was shown; this is experience, not an official threshold | source |
| account balance | in one case people were advised to show a €20,000 deposit | source |
| AIMA fee | €181.50 | source |
| D8 income, rough guide | about €3,500 | source |
| family deposit | €20,000 | source |
What to bring
- Passport with plenty of validity left
- Application form for the visto nacional D8 (national D8 visa)
- Photos meeting the consulate's requirements
- Health insurance or travel insurance (for entry), and later private insurance for AIMA
- Criminal record certificate from your country of citizenship and countries of residence, if required
- Apostille or legalisation of the criminal record certificate, if required
- Certified translations of documents into Portuguese or English — as required where you apply
- Consent to a criminal record check in Portugal
- Proof of legal residence in the country where you apply, if it is not your country of citizenship
- Employment contract, employer's letter confirming remote work, certificate of engagement or Service Provider Agreement
- Invoices, payslips, recibos or other proof of income for the last 3 months
- Bank statements for the last 3 months and a balance certificate
- Comprovativo de alojamento (proof of accommodation): tenancy agreement, its registration or a letter of guarantee
- NIF (Portuguese tax number)
- NISS (social security number), if you managed to get one, or proof of refusal or of an attempt
- Portuguese phone number
- AIMA residence permit application form
- For family members: marriage certificate, children's birth certificates, translations and apostilles as the consulate requires
Where people most often trip up
- The D8 income is calculated from four Portuguese minimum wages, so the amount changes every year.
- The threshold is usually looked at before tax, but the money actually coming into your account may also be checked.
- Do not apply with exactly the minimum amount: exchange rates and the consulate's interpretation may work against you.
- The official document list depends on the country where you apply; requirements in Moscow, Warsaw, Ankara or Bangkok may differ.
- Russian banks and Russian employers may lead to extra questions about where your income comes from and how you receive it.
- Accommodation is a common problem: a long tenancy before you arrive is hard to arrange, and there are many scammers.
- Opening a Portuguese bank account before you have a residence permit is getting harder; some banks refuse even with a D visa.
- You may not get a NISS on the D8 at the first attempt, especially if your contract is not Portuguese.
- AIMA may ask for more documents than the consulate did, including statements, the tenancy, NISS and translations.
- At AIMA it is best to have the form filled in and a card for payment; in one case MB Way did not work.
- In 2026 AIMA slots are given through a new procedure/portal, and you often cannot choose the office yourself.
- If your visa expires before your AIMA appointment, keep confirmations of booking, postponements and your application — you may need them at the border.
- Registering as self-employed in Portugal is not always required for the D8 itself, but after you move your tax set-up must match the work you actually do.
- For renewing your residence permit, what matters is not only the old visa documents but also recent income, taxes, your tenancy and your ties to Portugal.
How it went for people
Getting a D8 through the consulate in Warsaw
This person applied for the D8 in Warsaw as an independent cultural manager with project-based income. They booked the appointment in early December, applied on 30 January, and it took about 30 minutes; contracts and invoices for 3 months, statements showing income and savings, a room tenancy agreement, NIF, insurance, and certificates of tax residence and of no criminal record were accepted. Getting the tax residence certificate took about 2 weeks, and the consular fee was about €90. The visa was approved on 4 March, put in the passport on 12 March, and an AIMA appointment was set for 20 October.
A D8 in Budapest without a long tenancy
This person applied for the D8 at the consulate in Budapest on 3 November and was approved on 17 November. Instead of a long-term tenancy, hotel bookings for 3 weeks were accepted, and income was proven with a contract, permission to work remotely, payslips for 3 months and bank statements; the Hungarian residence permit had to be valid for at least another 7 months on the date of application. The first AIMA appointment was set for 26 November 2026. After a request through a migration consultant, within 3 weeks the appointment was moved to 17 March 2026, while the visa was still valid.
Applying for a D8 in Moscow and AIMA
This person applied for the D8 in Moscow on 6 November 2024 with a one-year tenancy agreement, an employment contract with a Russian company, proof of salary, a NIF and statements from Russian, Kazakh and Portuguese banks. Approval came on 14 February, and the visa was put in the passport on 28 February along with an AIMA appointment. Before moving in May, they replaced the Russian employment contract with a Service Agreement with a foreign company, registered as self-employed in Portugal and changed the address on their NIF to a Portuguese one. At the AIMA appointment, proof of self-employment, 3 recibos, the translated agreement, a 3-month statement and a certificate of no debts were accepted; the confirmation of the NISS request had to be printed out and brought in separately.
From visa application to residence card — 471 days
A family of four applied for visas on 18 July 2023: the husband as the main applicant on a digital nomad visa, the wife and two children as accompanying family members. The visas were put in their passports on 15 December without an AIMA appointment, they flew to Portugal on 27 December, and they only managed to book in March — and even then for July; some of the appointments were later moved to May and June in another city, but the children's could not be moved. They arrived for the appointment on 17 May to find a strike notice, but the very next day they were given a new date — 20 May. The main applicant's card arrived on 11 July 2024, the wife's on 5 September and the children's on 31 October. In total, 471 days from visa application to residence permit: 150 days for the visa and 321 days from the visa being issued to the card.
Applying unmarried: proving they lived together
A couple aged 23 applied together without being married: he on a digital nomad visa as a sole trader, she as an accompanying family member. At the consulate they were questioned persistently about what he did, and beyond the list they were asked for screenshots of work pages and a personal account statement showing daily spending. They proved they lived together with a flat tenancy agreement listing both of them and a joint bank account; they offered to show old photos of themselves together too, but that was not needed. Six months later a request for more information about taxes came — they sent a tax return, a certificate of no tax debt and a statement of payments to the tax office, and a month after that the approval came. The visa was issued until 31 December for two entries, and their AIMA appointments were in different cities, half an hour apart.
The family's cards came in a week, hers after two months of emails to AIMA
A family applied for the D8 from the USA: the husband and two older children had their appointment at one office, the youngest son in Lisbon, and the mother was seen together with the youngest, even though her appointment was a week later. Everyone got their cards a week after the appointment except her: right after applying the family flew back to the USA, and friends forwarded the cards by courier. When they returned to Portugal in August, at passport control she was treated not as a tourist on a visa-free passport but as a resident, on the strength of a paper from AIMA with her case number. For two months she sent AIMA the same status request every evening; on 30 July they replied that she had to wait for a letter at the address in her application, and the envelope arrived ten days after she got back.
Retold in our own words from messages in open chats. The link leads to the full original message.